The NFL Is Playing it Safe with New Kickoff Rule - Or Is It?

PixabayPhoto byKeithjj

Have you ever gotten up a good head of steam while running, then suddenly veered left straight into a wall?

How did that feel?

In the NFL, to start a game there’s what’s called a kickoff. A ritual where one team lines up their players, roughly in midfield, with the opposing team’s players facing them a few yards away, and then kicks the ball downfield to an additional player waiting to catch the ball and get things started.

Then the fun begins.

The idea is to catch the ball and run like hell toward the opposing goal, shortening the distance between your team and 6 points.

The fun part has to do with a number of grown men, large grown men in good physical shape, running flat out downfield to stop that player from gaining any yards.

Most of the time - nothing happens. That is the man is tackled, no scores are made and the offensive and defensive teams take the field.

What the cameras don’t always highlight are the ordinary mundane hits at 12 to 15 MPH.

There’s nothing like watching 500 pounds of athlete + equipment colliding somewhere on an acre and a half of green grass to make you glad you’re no longer playing football.

Sure, we know about the highlight reels where a game’s biggest hits are played over and over again as helmets fly, bodies spin and the laws of physics are routinely tested.

But the quiet hits, the ones 15 or 20 yards downfield where a special team’s player is blocked by an opposing player in the hopes of getting him out of the way so his team has a better chance of scoring.

Routine, nothing special.

If you don’t believe that, gather a few of your friends and head on over to the park. Bring a football so it all looks real enough and try this a few times.

From a standing start get the horses running and get up to full steam and then before you hit the other guy, pause for a split second - not really but just imagine yourself doing it.

Now think, what am I about to do?

Where am I going to hit this guy and is it going to hurt?

The answer is a resounding, yes. Of course, it’s going to hurt. And you’re not even very good at this.

In the NFL everything is bigger and faster and the owners and Commissioner Roger Goodell are changing things right where it gets interesting.

The longest kickoff return from one end of the field to the other is 109 yards. That record was set by Cordarrelle Patterson of the Minnesota Vikings in a game with the Green Bay Packers back in October 2013.

Watch the clip. It was fun to watch when it happened and it hasn’t lost much of the excitement seeing it now.

Kickoff returns and their “cousin” the punt return are some of the most exciting plays to watch in football. And most often some of the most boring because 98 out of 100 times nothing much happens. Sure 10-20-30 yards are gained and then it stops with a quick tackle.

On the edge of your seat or standing up one minute, beer in hand - and then it all comes to a sudden halt. Wait until the next one.

But what also happens in addition to the thrills is damage to the players. The NFL knows this. The owners know this and the players and union know this. But all three also know that it’s part of the game of football in the USA.

NFL football is all about hits and athleticism coming together violently within the rules of the game.

Would you pay $100 - $500 - $1000 for a seat at a professional flag football game? Probably not. And all three know that too.

But one NFL player, Matthew Slater of the New England Patriots felt the gesture of installing a new and less threatening rule didn’t sit right with him.

The new rule states that a player downfield waiting for the kicked ball to come to him - can now call a fair catch. This being a term in which a player signals by raising up one arm indicating to the other team that - I am about to catch this ball and not move, I’m staying right here so don’t hit me.

It’s a way to secure a decent position on the field to start your offense and not get the cr*p knocked out of you by a second-string linebacker envisioning your head up in the cheap seats.

Plus, now you automatically get the ball placed on your 25-yard line - not bad at all, all things considered.

Matthew Slater wasn’t necessarily opposed to the rule, he was opposed to the perception that the NFL and owners really cared about player safety.

"I just don't believe this is truly in the name of player health and safety. What I do believe is, 'We [the NFL] want to portray ourselves a certain way to the public that says we care about the players,'" said Slater, the 37-year-old son of Pro Football Hall of Famer Jackie Slater.

One needn’t read too far back when the NFL lawsuit was playing out in the courts concerning concussions and CTE. A lot was said, a lot of findings were made public and the NFL didn’t exactly come out of that process looking like the good guys.

But the game continues, apparently with full agreement from all concerned.

Keeping in mind that Commissioner Goodell’s contract is up for renewal, a deal reportedly worth in the neighborhood of $200 million. With the extension, the “neighborhood” will likely improve, telling all of us that the NFL, its hits, highlight reels, and concerns about player safety aren’t going anywhere.

The rule itself seems like a good one. No doubt there are some national associations of medical professionals nodding their heads right now saying - about time.

While a far greater number of NFL fans are saying the opposite - no way!

The rule will go into effect for one year and then will be reevaluated.

What that will look like in a year’s time, is anyone’s guess.

Until then, will we see more NFL players raising their right arm high and playing it safe and as a result disappointing some fans?

Stay tuned.